Is the NBA title window closed for Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks?

Starting the season 1-3 isn’t the end of the world, but for a team with championship aspirations like the Milwaukee Bucks, it’s a shaky start.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard still haven’t found their groove, and it’s clear that this partnership needs more time — and help. Khris Middleton is still out. The core is aging, the bench is weak and the viewing pool is almost non-existent. To make matters worse, the Bucks don’t control a single draft pick until 2031. And, oh yeah — Doc Rivers is the coach. Has the title window in Milwaukee quietly creaked?

I’ll bet yes, the Giannis Era Bucks will go down as one-and-done champions. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Their 2021 title run was an eternity, with Giannis looking like he would be sidelined by a serious injury, only to return, dominate and drop 50 points in the clincher.

Of course, there is no safety in the NBA. Deals and surprises happen. Damage occurs. Just ask the 2019 Raptors.

The Giannis-Dame duo still has a chance to flourish. Statistically, they still rank high when Giannis screens for Lillard. This despite Giannis being a mediocre screener. He will often step into the defender and make light contact before sliding toward the rim, whereas Brook Lopez will make hard contact at an angle that gives Lillard a lane to the rim or room to get into his jumper. For now, Lopez sets nearly double the number of screens for Lillard that Giannis does. So Giannis needs to improve in this department and should make this a priority, even if it means getting fewer shots himself.

Milwaukee bought Lillard for good reason. And after a down year, he now looks as fresh as he did during the 2022-2023 season in Portland, when he averaged a career-high 32.2 points on 64.5% true shooting. At some point, the Bucks will probably get above .500, Giannis and Dame will have some outstanding performances, and Middleton will return. There will be a sense of optimism in Milwaukee, at least for a while.

The problem is almost everyone else on the list. Without Middleton, the Bucks lack reliable shooting; they rank 18th in 3-point percentage and 23rd in attempts. And when Lopez isn’t on the floor, the Bucks’ defense falls apart. Sample sizes are small, but the Bucks go from a modest 112.1 defensive rating with Lopez to 122.3 with Bobby Portis. Portis will have five-minute stretches where he hits every shot, but that doesn’t make up for his inability to box out, his ball-stopping and his blindfolded defensive awareness.

Jrue Holiday’s absence has left a void in perimeter defense and reliability that Milwaukee hasn’t been able to replace. Holiday’s trade for Lillard was intended to increase the offense, but the team now feels exposed defensively. Gary Trent Jr. has been jumping around for a reason; he is not the answer.

In Sunday’s Bucks loss to the Celtics, Boston had shooters at every position — Holiday included — while Milwaukee made just a quarter of its triples. The difference in depth was shown across the board. The Celtics have two of the NBA’s best backups at their respective positions in point guard Payton Pritchard, whom they drafted and developed, and center Luke Kornet, who they acquired when he was just 25. Meanwhile, the Bucks are a wasteland of has-beens. busted draft picks and unclear youth.

Bucks general manager Jon Horst had a chance to surround Giannis with the right talent, but he’s flogged. For years, Milwaukee has either traded away draft picks or taken raw prospects with potential rather than immediate impact. Since Horst took over as GM in 2017, he has drafted six players in the top 40:

• DJ Wilson, 17th in 2017

• Donte DiVincenzo, 17th in 2018

• MarJon Beauchamp, 24th in 2022

• Andre Jackson, 36th in 2023

• AJ Johnson, 23rd in 2024

• Tyler Smith, 33rd in 2024

DiVincenzo is a hit, even if he didn’t break out until the Bucks traded him for an aging, fading Serge Ibaka. Jackson still has potential, but his shaky jumper makes him a challenge to play next to Giannis.

But the following players were drafted in the first round after Wilson: John Collins, Jarrett Allen, OG Anunoby, Kyle Kuzma, Derrick White and Josh Hart. All six of them remain productive players. Wilson plays for the Shanghai Sharks.

And the Johnson pick in the 2024 draft is one of the most enigmatic picks in recent memory. Johnson weighs 167 pounds. He averaged 2.9 points last year on 42% true shooting in Australia. He is two years away from being two years away. Still, the Bucks — a team with a 36-year-old center, a 34-year-old point guard, a 33-year-old two guard and a soon-to-be 30-year-old face of the franchise — chose to wait for the slim chance that he ever materializes . Meanwhile, several NBA-ready rookies were still on the board, like Suns forward Ryan Dunn, who is one of the best defenders to enter the NBA in recent memory, making over 40% of his 3’s are so far.

Horst was instrumental in building a championship team around Giannis, acquiring Lopez, Jrue Holiday and PJ Tucker, and firing Jason Kidd and hiring Mike Budenholzer. But a GM who went all-in for a title now faces the cost of win-now decisions when his margin moves haven’t worked. Trading away every pick until 2031 leaves them depleted of assets at the trade deadline, and no young players have needle-moving acquisition value either. In the years since winning it all, he’s come up short on every single draft pick, and he’s struck out at every turn in the late second round and undrafted phase (even if AJ Green is a pain in the ass). And other decisions haven’t panned out, whether it was DiVincenzo-for-Ibaka, five second-rounders for washed-up Jae Crowder, or hiring Adrian Griffin and firing him only to hire Doc.

Rivers will likely be scapegoated if the team continues to stumble. And in some ways, that’s fair. This system feels old and sluggish. There is also a lack of spirit. On the one hand, how much can any coach do with an aging core, few assets and a depleted bench? On the other hand, even the best roster can falter under the wrong coach. Just ask the Magic, Celtics and Clippers about the Docs’ track record of three blown 3-1 leads and five blown 3-2 leads. But right now, the Bucks have to worry about winning games before they think about winning the playoff series.

This season is about more than wins for the Bucks. It’s about proving they’re still title contenders – and showing Giannis that they’re worth his loyalty.